EBE Chapter 481 The Great Jin Dynasty Wins! (Bonus Chapter)
Chapter 481 The Great Jin Dynasty Wins! (Bonus Chapter)
The Jin army camp was brightly lit.
The soldiers' faces were tired yet excited. They gathered together, talking and laughing loudly, and some even started betting on how long it would take to return to the capital.
"We've won! Prince Xie shot the Emperor of Liang with a single arrow. What a brilliant victory!"
Amid cheers, Xie Yanli entered the main tent, where Shen Xingjian greeted him with a broad smile that crinkled his eyes.
"You're back! That was a brilliant plan!"
Xie Yanli didn't say anything, but just smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"But I still don't understand." Xie Jingchun sat to the side eating an apple, his armor still stained with some undried blood, looking very relaxed.
"Father, how do you know that Li Wuyang will definitely take the bait?"
He frowned in thought, “Li Wuyang is cautious, ruthless, and extremely cunning, like a snake coiled in the shadows, rarely showing its face.”
“He is indeed intelligent, but the more intelligent a person is, the more easily they are trapped by themselves,” Meng Ze said, putting down his teacup.
Xie Jingchun was stunned for a moment, then looked at Meng Ze.
Meng Ze raised his head. "I've been in Daliang for over twenty years and know a little about Li Wuyang. He likes military strategy, but he's even more fond of unorthodox methods."
"He wouldn't read much of the likes 'Six Secret Teachings' or 'Three Strategies.' But he would definitely love obscure and rare books like 'The Master of Guiguzi,' 'Secret Words on Military Strategy,' and 'The Eight Gates Formation Diagram.'"
"The formation we set up this time is a deliberately misaligned Bagua formation based on the incomplete manuscript. He can understand it, but others can't, not even his own people."
Xie Yanli whispered from the side, "The more he is the only one who understands, the more he wants to prove that he is right."
"He thought that since he had figured out our formation, he would want to break it himself, which is his weakness."
Meng Ze gave a cold laugh, "But little did he know, his cleverness backfired."
A moment of silence fell inside the tent.
Xie Jingchun clicked his tongue: "No wonder you all said he would definitely come out. So that's why."
“Everyone has weaknesses,” Xie Yanli said calmly. “He was too confident.”
Shen Xingjian sighed, "If this arrow had been fatal, the Great Liang would have truly been thrown into chaos."
"Actually, there's another reason," Xie Yanli suddenly said.
The people in the tent were taken aback and all turned to look at him.
Xie Yanli looked at Xie Jingchun, a smile in his eyes, "Because of you."
Xie Jingchun himself was stunned.
"Me? But I didn't do anything."
Xie Yanli glanced at him. "In the battle of Lin Yuan City, you caused Li Wuyang to suffer heavy losses and lose face. How could he not hold a grudge?"
“He hates you to the core. He can’t sit still the moment you appear outside the Cangling Forest.”
"The more you hate someone, the easier it is to lose your composure due to emotions."
Xie Jingchun blinked, and after a long while, he said softly, "So I was also part of the plan."
"This battle was won not by luck," Meng Ze said slowly, "but because every detail was executed flawlessly, without a single mistake."
He stretched out his hand and counted them one by one on his fingers.
"The Eight Trigrams Formation, Xie Jingchun, Xie Yanli's arrows, and our understanding of his personality."
After a moment, Shen Xingjian chuckled softly, "To scheme against people's hearts is to earn a single, fatal blow."
The Liang army tent.
The tent was filled with the aroma of medicine, and the brazier was burning brightly.
Li Wuyang slowly opened his eyes, only hearing intermittent gasps and breathing sounds.
Immediately afterward, someone noticed he was awake. "The Emperor is awake! Quickly! Summon the imperial physician!"
An elderly imperial physician with graying temples hurried in.
"Your Majesty, thankfully, most of the arrow poison has been expelled, but..."
"Just what?" Li Wuyang asked in a low, hoarse voice.
The old imperial physician hesitated for a moment, then finally lowered his head. "This poison injures the heart and disrupts the meridians. Furthermore, due to the severe injury and excessive blood loss, I fear His Majesty's lifespan is already half gone..."
"Furthermore, the arrow poison has entered the bone marrow and damaged the nerves. It is feared that he will be unable to stand again and will have to rely on a wheelchair for mobility."
The room fell into a deathly silence.
Li Wuyang stared at the top of the tent with his eyes open, remaining silent for a long time.
"You said... my lifespan would be halved." He repeated softly, almost to himself, "And I wouldn't be able to walk anymore?"
The old imperial physician pressed his forehead to the ground, not daring to respond.
After a long while, Li Wuyang chuckled softly.
"Ha... Xie Yanli, you're really ruthless."
At this moment, the tent flap was suddenly lifted, and a guard quickly stepped inside.
"Your Majesty, the Jin army has delivered a military report."
Li Wuyang leaned against the thick brocade quilt and nodded slightly, indicating that he should bring it.
The guards carefully presented the military report, and the imperial physician tried to help him up, but he waved him away.
Li Wuyang took the military report, his fingers trembling slightly, but he still forced himself to unfold it.
After reading it, he stared at the military report for a long time, then his fingers loosened, and the scroll slipped down in front of his bed.
"I lost."
Half a month later, the Great Jin Dynasty.
Outside the palace gates, the sound of galloping hooves could be heard. A group of Liang envoys, dressed in white silk, knelt at the foot of the golden steps, presenting a letter of state with both hands.
Gao Xian sat on the throne and opened the memorial bearing the seal of the Great Liang Kingdom and the imperial seal.
"Read it aloud."
Yuan Xi unfolded the official letter and recited it aloud.
"Emperor Li Wuyang of the Great Liang Dynasty respectfully writes to His Majesty Emperor Gao Xian of the Jin Dynasty: Since ancient times, when two countries are at war, the people suffer. Now, the people of the Great Liang Dynasty are exhausted by the war and the country is in dire need of its people. We are willing to cede twenty border cities to the Great Jin Dynasty to express our sincere apology. We are also willing to pay tribute of gold, silver, silk, cattle, sheep and grain every year to ensure that the two countries will not be at war for a hundred years."
After the words were spoken, the hall was silent for a moment, then erupted in uproar.
"Claim twenty cities, and pay tribute for thirty years?!"
"This... the Great Liang actually submitted like this?"
"The might of our Great Jin Dynasty awes the world!"
When the news reached the people, drums sounded in the streets and alleys, children set off firecrackers, women hung lanterns, and the whole country rejoiced.
The people spread the news, swept their courtyards, and burned incense to thank Heaven.
On that day, the capital city of Jin was brightly lit, and even the night curfew was lifted on the main street of the imperial city.
The distillery opened after the third drumbeat, and the sounds of hawking and laughter filled the air.
Hou House.
"My lord, the old lady! The young lady! We've won! Our Great Jin has won! Great Liang has already made peace, and the official letter arrived in the capital this morning!"
A servant rushed in.
Old Madam Xie stood up shakily, barely able to speak, only murmuring, "Thank God, thank God... Ancestors, please bless us! Ancestors, please bless us! This battle has finally been won!"
"Yay!" Xie Jue cheered immediately, clapping his hands and jumping up and down with joy.
"We won! We won! Father won! Big brother won! We are the best!"
He jumped so high on his toes that he knocked over a small stool next to him.
Qin Jiu was stunned for a moment, and a layer of tears quickly rose in her eyes.
Her throat tightened, and after a long while, she finally looked up at the servant, "...When will they be back?"
The servant immediately replied, "Young Madam, the army still needs to reorganize the wounded and clean up the post-war affairs. Prince Xie sent word that they will be able to set off for the capital within half a month."
Two weeks later, the spring sunshine was warm and pleasant.
The room was bright and clean, and Qin Jiuwei was standing in the central hall, bending down to carefully instruct the maid.
"Replace the curtains here, and hang up that 'Peace and Good Fortune' painting. Re-lay the bed curtains, and place some mugwort sachets by the pillow..."
The maids responded and quickly began to make arrangements.